We, the undersigned civil society organizations, write this letter ahead of the reaccreditation of the National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) of Bahrain and Egypt, scheduled for October 23-27, 2023.
We believe that NHRIs in both countries are not adhering to the Paris Principles and implementing the recommendations outlined in the SCA’s previous reports in 2016 and 2018, respectively.
The Paris Principles define the minimum standards that NHRIs must adhere to “in order to be considered trustworthy and to operate effectively.” The pillars of these principles are: Pluralism, independence and effectiveness. NHRIs must be independent from governments, work together on behalf of civil society, and effectively promote human rights by monitoring and addressing violations. According to civil society reports, NHRIs in Bahrain and Egypt do not meet these standards.
in bahrain, all current members of the National Institute for Human Rights (NIHR) have been appointed by King Hamad through a Royal Decree issued on 9 May 2021, and there is no democratic or independent mechanism for making these selections. there is no. The current chair of the NIHR, Ali al-Deraj, is reportedly involved in abuses against migrant workers. Additionally, NIHR Vice-Chairman Khalid Abdulaziz Alshahr previously said: called Imposing the death penalty on those who criticize the Bahraini government.
In August 2022, the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights concluded:[the NIHR] It has not yet achieved the independence necessary to carry out its functions. The United Nations Human Rights Committee previously expressed similar concerns in 2018.[regretted] Information about the complaint is missing [the NIHR] Complaints received by and investigations conducted in response to those complaints.
Furthermore, Bahrain’s NIHR does not address and completely denies human rights violations by the authorities, including arbitrary detention, abuse, and medical malpractice in various detention facilities. These are the three Bahraini human rights defenders Abduljalil Al-Singace, Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, and Naji Fatel who were arbitrarily detained, tortured, medically neglected, and subjected to sham trials. This contradicts the findings of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.
About the Egyptian National Human Rights Council (NCHR), and also lacks independence from the government. In 2021, new members of the NCHR were appointed for a four-year period. Its chairman, Musila Khattab, and vice president, Mahmoud Karem Mahmoud, are both former Egyptian officials and diplomats. In both 2014 and 2018, Mr. Mahmoud served as the coordinator of Mr. Sisi’s presidential campaign, clearly demonstrating the close ties between the NCHR and the official.
In March 2023, the UN Human Rights Committee reiterated these concerns about the “lack of security measures.” [the NCHR’s] The same goes for “full independence and effectiveness” and “lack of information on the effective implementation of the recommendations.”
The NCHR has left hundreds of complaints unanswered and blatantly denies that certain human rights violations are occurring. In 2020, the Council said the UN Committee against Torture’s findings that torture in Egypt was “systematic” was a “politicized classification” aimed at “undermining government efforts”. He said that. The NCHR has also remained silent on prominent human rights issues such as enforced disappearances and appalling conditions of detention. In July 2023, the president of the council compared the new correctional facility in Wadi Al Natrun to a “five-star hotel”. We believe that her NCHR in Egypt falls far short of her NHRI activities with the “A” status that has been alarmingly granted by the SCA since 2006.
In light of the above, it is clear that NHRIs in Bahrain and Egypt have consistently failed to adhere to the Paris Principles and implement the recommendations of the SCA.
We strongly recommend that you consider the aforementioned shortcomings of the Bahrain and Egyptian NHRIs and not grant them the status “A” when considering them in future sessions.
Signer:
- Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)
- Civicus
- Democracy Now in the Arab World (DAWN)
- Egyptian Rights and Freedoms Commission
- Egyptian Front for Human Rights (EFHR)
- El Nadeem against violence and torture
- Human Rights Foundation (HRF)
- HuMENA for human rights and citizen participation
- International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) – within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
- International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)
- Law and Democracy Support Foundation (LDSF)
- MENA Rights Group
- Rights Realization Center (UK)
- Salam for Democracy and Human Rights (SALAM DHR)
- #FreeAlKhawaja Campaign
- Freedom Initiative (FI)
- World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) – within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
original letter
